Media Essay: Analyse the representation of women in
“Thelma and Louise”
At the start of this film we see Louise working in a busy
diner as a waitress. At this point Louise fills the stereotype of “the hard
working women” that struggles to get by on only minimum
wage.
Thelma on the other hand fills the stereotype of the “feminised housewife” as
she does everything for her husband who controls her life. During the phone
call both characters are depicted in a kitchen, which conforms to the
stereotype of women fulfilling their domestic
duties.
When Louise pulls up outside Thelma’s house, Louise is
wearing jeans and a white t-shirt whereas Thelma is wearing a
white
t-shirt and a skirt which suggests that Thelma is the more girly one and Louise
is the stronger of the two characters. Thelma has several handbags on her and a
large suitcase, which suggests that she is unsure what to take, and conforms to
the stereotype that women are indecisive when it comes to clothes and
fashion.
When they first get in the car Thelma holds up gun as if it a banana peel,
which suggests that she is immature and that she doesn’t know how to handle a
gun.
When on the road they drive past a water sprayer they give
out a little scream. This scream is very feminised as this is how men expect
women to react in this
situation.
This is because Ridley Scott who is male directed the film and, according to
Mulvey’s theory of the male gaze, men objectified women in films and television
so the camera was put in their point of view – this scene makes the characters
seem very innocent and unable to protect their selves.
In the bar Thelma and Louise’s attitude to men are easily
identified. Louise knows what men are like and when Harland comes over to offer
the characters a drink she blows smoke in his face to tell him to leave.
However, Thelma is very naïve so when Harland comes over she thinks he’s just
being kind so she goes and dances with him. When Louise goes to the bathroom
all the women are crowding round the mirror to fix their make up and hair this
conforms to the stereotype that women are always concerned about their
appearance.
During this scene Thelma steps outside with Harland to get some air and she
thinks he’s just being kind. However, Harland is a stereotypical man that only
has sex on his mind and because she’s been dancing with him all night he thinks
he the right to take advantage of
her.
Thelma comes across as very innocent and is overpowered by Harland, Louise on
the other hand is a strong women that stands up for Thelma and for all women by
shooting Harland after he tried to rape
Thelma.
This shows Louise as a woman who stands up for herself and stands up against
men; it shows that she is the stronger woman of the two characters and also the
more down to earth character.
After this, the two characters attitudes and personalities
change, but to start with Louise acts as a shoulder to lean on for Thelma who is
traumatised by what just happened and keeps crying. Louise on the other hand
stays strong and starts coming up with plans for going on the run.
On their journey they come across J.D who Thelma falls for,
this conforms to the stereotype that women are naïve. When they get to Arkansas
Louise goes to get the money her boyfriend wired to her, however when she goes
in she finds Jimmy, her boyfriend, waiting for her which conforms to the
stereotype that men don’t
listen.
After this they go to a motel where Jimmy proposes to Louise, in this scene
Louise pushes Jimmy away. This is does not conform to the stereotype of women
as it is normally the men that push the women away. This indicates the start of
Louise’s rebellion against the stereotypical
women.
In the morning Thelma’s personality and attitude has
completely changed. This is first shown by what she is wearing – jeans and a
t-shirt – which show that she is a stronger person now and that she has lost
her girly responsibilities as she is no longer wearing a
skirt. This change is explained after she tells
Louise that she had just had sex with J.D and she now feel like a woman and not
a girl. When they go back to the motel they discover that J.D has stolen their
money and Louise starts to break down and cry, now Thelma is stronger of the
two and tells Louise that everything is going to be all right and Thelma starts
driving. This shows a role switch between the two characters and how they
represent
women.
After being on the road for a bit they stop off at a gas
station where Thelma goes in and leaves Louise in the car – she proceeds to rob
the store using the gun. The gun is now held firmly in her hand rather than
with just her fingers like it was before. This shows that Thelma has completely
changed and that she is a bit careless of her own life. In the late 80’s this
was nearly unheard of so Thelma’s character has gone against the stereotypes of
women and makes herself seem dangerous compared to her innocent, girly self
from the beginning of the
film.
Back on the road they pass a truck driver who is a
stereotypical man looking for sex. When they pull him over they start asking
him to apologies but because he doesn’t they decide to get their own back on
him by shooting his tanker. This is a way to show women rebelling against men
and represents women as ruthless and careless. As they drive away Thelma and
Louise laugh which shows that they enjoyed getting their own back, which shows
that Thelma and Louise no longer care about the control that men had over their
lives.
When they are pulled over by a cop for speeding Thelma comes
across as a reckless woman with no feelings as she puts the cop in the boot at
gunpoint. This shows that Thelma’s personality has changed completely since
that start of the film, she is no longer the girl that gets bossed around but
in fact the complete opposite. This presents women as strong and independent
but also it presents them in a negative way, which is that they don’t think
things
through.
At the end of the film you can see that Thelma and Louise’s
relationship has become stronger and they are very honest and trustworthy of
each other. Driving off the cliff at the end shows that they were not going to
ruin everything they have fought against; listening to the authority of men.
This represents women as quite rash at their decisions but also that they are
strong enough to make a stand for what they fight
for.
In conclusion Thelma and Louise to begin with represent
women as innocent and naïve but during the course of the film it shows how a
woman’s attitude and personality changes when put into unfamiliar situations.
It shows that even the most innocent and feminised housewife can become
careless and independent when pushed over the edge.
Excellent essay Liam. You have provided a detailed analysis of the
two characters, with clear comparisons made between them.
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